Depth sensing technology can be used to determine a person's location in relation to nearby objects or to generate an image of a person's immediate environment in three dimensions (3D). An example of depth sensing technology is a time-of-flight (ToF) depth camera. A ToF camera has a light source to emit light onto nearby objects. Light reflected off surfaces of the objects can be captured by the ToF camera. The time it takes for the light to travel from the light source of the ToF camera and reflect back from an object is converted into a depth measurement (i.e., distance to the object), which can be processed to map physical surfaces in the user's environment and, if desired, to render a 3D image of the user's environment.
Conventional light sources are bulky structures that require complex manual assembly. For example, the dimensions of a conventional light source may be 60×25×35 millimeters, which is physically too large for some applications. The light sources are bulky in part because they utilize physically large laser light sources, have large optical working distances, and include optical elements that must be manually inserted into the light sources. As such, the resulting 3D sensing camera is physically bulky and heavy, and may not be usable in wearable or mobile applications. Additionally, processes for manufacturing existing light sources cannot feasibly be combined with automated processes used to assemble electronic components of a depth sensor. Hence, processes for manufacturing existing light sources are cost prohibitive and result in bulky structures that are poorly suited for some applications such as depth sensors (for use in mobile or wearable applications) and are an impediment to further miniaturization of such sensors.